fitness, health & fashion by model and YouTuber Kirby Anne Akindeinde

Month: May 2015

Calories. A word that many of us dread, count or say far too often in one day. The basis of what you should consume on a day-to-day basis, right? 2,500 for men and 2,000 for women if I remember correctly. But what do calories really say about the quality of your diet? In my opinion, not very much.

Although I’ve never been a calorie counter, others counting calories had never bothered me. That was until the day one of my friends told me that she would have to be sick (yes, sick!) if she ate my 650 cal pasta salad, simultaneously pointing to the nutritional information on the packet. Well, you can imagine my horror. Not only had my friend just insulted my meal whilst openly suggesting that she has an unhealthy disorder- which she doesn’t, by the way- she had made me question whether what I had thought to be a relatively healthy meal was really any good for me at all. What’s more, my super-healthy-calorie-counting friend then proceeded to demolish her 450 cal mini portion of chip shop chips…

Of course, what was I thinking? Only 450 calories in a (mini) bag of chips is way better than a nutrition-packed 650 cal pasta salad. Pfft, best get down to the chip shop every day- four bags and I’m still under my recommended daily calorie intake. Wooohoo!

The truth is, that it’s not so much about the calories, but about the nutritional value of you food. Two meals with the exact same calorie count can have very different impacts on your body.

Not only that, but we all burn calories differently- some quicker than others- and the amount of calories that we burn also depends upon how active we are. Did you know that roughly, it takes around 25-30 minutes of running to burn just 300 calories? With 2000+ calories a day to burn, we’d all best get moving!

Don’t get me wrong, calories aren’t all bad. They can be used to help guide how much food you are eating and therefore influence the maintenance of healthy consumption levels. However just remember- it’s not always about how much you eat, but about what you eat. Perhaps next time I hear somebody complaining that they’re not going to eat something because it has ‘too many calories’, I’ll send them in the direction of the local chip shop.

We all know that face wipes aren’t always the best for your skin, but sometimes we just don’t have time to cleanse! For me, cleansing is always number one, but when time is running short or I’m heading for a cheeky weekend away, face wipes are the only way to go and Garnier’s Micellar face wipes are my number one choice!

Containing thin silk fibres and soaked with Garnier’s Micellar cleansing water (a face cleanse option for when you do have time to soak), I can honestly say that these are the softest face wipes that I have ever felt. With an almost foam-like sensation, the wipes feel as though they are gliding across your skin- rather than scrubbing- and are surprisingly effective. My make up is always removed in no time and my skin left feeling silky.

Fancy a try? Pick them up at most supermarkets or chemists for around £3 and let me know what you think!

Over the past few weeks I’ve been feeling quite down, impatient. A feeling of inadequacy- almost as though I’m underachieving in life. So much so that it’s been reflecting on my usually oh-so positive, nothing-can-bring-me-down attitude. I’ve found myself in foul moods, snapping at the smallest things and letting tiny niggles that I would usually ignore affect my actions. It’s been like this for a while and this week I finally decided that I’d had enough and that I needed to pinpoint exactly what has been causing this freak behaviour.

After much thought, I realised that I have very little reason to feel this way. I live in London, the capital city of England, which was always the vision. I have a head office career with international fashion company ASOS- a job that many would dream of. I have a growing and successful blog, amazing friends, a supportive, loving family, a babein’ boyfriend (not that this means that I need a man for any of you singletons) and importantly, I am in good- if not great- health. So, why all the gloom and doom?

For one, I’m ambitious. You’d think that this would be a good thing right? But not if your ambition is used in the wrong way. I know where I want to be and I want it now, but we live in the real world and for most of us, things just don’t happen that way. Goals, dreams and ambitions all take a lot of hard work and time to achieve. It’s come to my attention that of late, I’ve been way too impatient when it comes to where I want to be. I will be where I want to be eventually, I’ve just been clinging on to the hope that I can skip out the long sleepless nights, stress and time that turns dreams into reality.

But I do work hard. I work very hard in fact. Surely I should be at the top already?! Slow down, what’s the rush?… These things take time and quite frankly, I don’t own a time machine and if I did would I really want to use it anyway?! Probably not. Why wish my time away. We live in the present and if you’re too busy focusing on where you’re not, then you don’t appreciate where you are. Lesson number one: enjoy now, appreciate now, live now.

The second reason behind my lack of self-worth points directly to that thing that takes over most of our days. Social Media.

I won’t lie, I’m almost Instagram-obsessed. After all, it is an amazing way to market yourself, keep check on your favourite people to love, hate, secretly stalk and it’s fun. It’s also dangerous. I find myself longing after girls with perfect bodies, perfect careers and basically, perfect lives. It’s so unfair. If they can have it, why can’t I? The answer to that… I can. All I need to do collate the best moments from my life in picture form and post them for the world to see. Fair enough, Mimi Elashiry may have a bod to die for, Mahina Alexander might play in surf-ridden waves with her beautiful surfer boyfriend and Sahara Ray might bask in the LA sun for most of the week. But these girls are all real. They do have bad hair days, they do cry and have mood swings, they do have the occasional boring day where they have to look way back in their photo stream for that insta-worthy post (does #tbt spring to mind?).

I spoke to some of my friends on the matter and they admit that they do the same- envy the lives of social ‘icons’ that they don’t even know. The same friends that I look at as being successful, amazing people with lifestyles that should be celebrated, not questioned. At the end of the day, everybody wants something that they don’t have.

The point that I’m trying to make is, that these Queens (and Kings) of the Web aren’t better than any of us and we definitely shouldn’t be comparing ourselves to their social media pages. We live in the real world and we all lead unique lives. Lesson number two: don’t compare. Be you and only you and if you still feel the need to compete, then compete with yourself.

So, after some long thought I’ve decided that it’s time to live in the moment, work hard and be appreciative. It’s time to ditch comparing myself to others and to stop lusting after social media lives. It’s time to concentrate on myself and not be afraid to have to wait for my hard work to pay off. I’ve decided that it’s time to be me.

If you’re still reading then congratulations for reaching the bottom of my essay to self-discovery. To all Tigeress followers, I hope that you can find you. But most importantly, I hope that you can be you. Enjoy! xx

Our favourite guest writer is back once again (yippeee) and as a bit of a nutrition expert, I always look forward to hearing Lois’s top food and drink finds. This time she’s blogging all about her new found love for a super healthy drink… Here’s why Lois thinks that Aloe Vera water is one to try! x

I recently discovered Aloe Vera water and was pleasantly surprised at the refreshing and sweet taste of this yummy beverage!

After some research, I loved the sound of all of its health and beauty benefits. Aloe Vera is packed full of amino acids, vitamins including A, C and E and minerals such as Calcium, Iron and Zinc, making it a fabulous drink for detoxing and for boosting your immune system. It helps with lowering blood cholesterol and blood sugar levels and if that isn’t enough, it also helps to increase the healthiness of your hair and promotes hair growth.

Aloe Vera, in its pure leaf form, can sooth skin issues such as acne or burns and is great for skin hydration and building skin’s natural defences- meaning that I’m on a crazy hunt for Aloe Vera product to keep my skin glowing all summer!

Ensure that you’re feeling fresh and healthy after all of this weekend’s Bank Holiday madness by popping down to your local supermarket and trying my new favourite source of hydration!

If I placed a test tube full of coloured liquid in front of you, telling you it was called ghansalinadide, would you drink it?

The chances are that you answered no to the above question. Well I hope that your answer was no, because I can bet money that you don’t even know what ghansalinadide is. If you do, then I’m impressed because ghansalinadide isn’t a real thing. It doesn’t exist. I made it up. And if it did exist, it definitely wouldn’t be something that you would be wanting to swig down by the gallon.

The point that I’m trying to make is that most of us wouldn’t willingly consume a chemical or substance that we were unsure of (and that looks like it belongs in a lab).

Another question for you. Think about what’s in your cupboard. Now tell me. What is in your cupboard? Sure, there may be a can of soup, a tin of beans, pasta, cereal bars- but what is really in your cupboard? Take the cereal bar for example. Would you be able to confidently tell me what it consists of? Would you be able to name every single ingredient without giving it a second thought? The sad truth is that your answer is probably no, and you’re not alone.

The majority of us spend our lives consuming products with very little idea of the contents. We voluntarily eat food that contains ingredients that we can barely pronounce, never mind identify. Maltodextrin. E471. Aspartame. Mannitol. The list goes on…

So, here’s the challenge. I challenge you to complete five whole days where you only consume food with natural ingredients. It’s simple, don’t consume anything with ingredients that you don’t know what they are. Eat fruit and vegetables, brown rice and feta. Don’t feed your system with E numbers or chemicals. Read the ingredients and only buy products where you are sure of every single substance listed. In short, don’t fill your body with anything processed- go natural!

You’ll feel more energised, cleansed and it will work wonders for your skin. I guarantee that you will start to feel better even after just two days! The challenge will not only improve your energy and health, but will also allow you to make more conscious food and drink decisions in the future. I’ll be carrying out my challenge Monday to Friday next week and I cannot wait to feel revitalised once again! Give it a go and let me know how you get on… because natural is the way it’s meant to be! xx

There has been much debate over the necessity of this widely viewed advertisement from Protein World. ‘Are You Beach Body Ready?’ the ad reads, accompanied by what I can only describe as a blonde, well-gifted, bronzed babe standing proudly for all to see. Women have taken to the streets to protest against the use of the female figure featured in the campaign. Defacing the advertisements, donning bikinis of what people should really look like and basically, causing a lot of negative noise.

It seems that the ad has caused quite a stir with many still unhappy of this ‘perfect’ portrayal, arguing that ‘real’ women should be used. But at the end of the day, what really is a real woman?

The consensus here at Tigeress is that this women has one hell of a figure that she’s clearly worked hard to achieve and that she should be proud of. Just as any woman should be proud of HER own body. Fair enough, there may have been some Photoshopping going on- maybe there has, maybe there hasn’t- but who cares?! I bet that this girl looks great in person and is healthy.

Come on ladies, stop the hating. Women should unite not degrade each other, because after all, that’s where the real power lies. If you ask us, a real woman is whatever the hell she wants to be!

Let us know your thoughts on this controversial ad, we’d love to hear!

Avocados have to be the go-to health food of the last couple of years. They’re high in potassium, fibre, antioxidants and healthy fats. They protect our eyes, lower cholesterol levels and can even can help to fight cancer. Pretty amazing right?! But when it comes to eating them, you have to be quick or else, similar to bananas, they’ll be turning that yucky brown colour that’s not quite so appealing!

I stumbled across this interesting video of how to banish the brown and keep your avo fresh for longer!

With BBQ season on the way, who doesn’t love a good guacamole dip! Give these cheeky little tips a try for guac that can be prepared the night before and will last until you actually want to eat it- one less stress for the day! Or (like myself) why not prepare a batch at the weekend and have a stash of guac for the week ahead… Yum! xx